Reebok And Athletes Cut Ties With CrossFit Over Founder Greg Glassman's George Floyd Tweet
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CrossFit affiliate gym Rocket CrossFit, based in Seattle, said it will disaffiliate with the company, and in a blog post published a profanity-laden letter from Glassman that attacked the gym’s co-owner, Alyssa Royse, of trying to brand CrossFit as “racist”.
CrossFit games supplier Rogue Fitness, which provides strength training equipment to the event, said it would remove the CrossFit logo from this year’s event and will “work with CrossFit Games leadership to determine the best path forward.”
NEWS PEG
Glassman sparked outrage on Sunday after referring to the death of unarmed black man George Floyd in police custody as ‘It’s FLOYD-19’. His tweet was a direct reply to a post from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation that read: “Racism and discrimination are critical public health issues that demand an urgent response. #BlackLivesMatter.” Glassman later apologized on the CrossFit twitter page, saying: “I, CrossFit HQ, and the CrossFit community will not stand for racism. I made a mistake by the words I chose yesterday. My heart is deeply saddened by the pain it has caused. It was a mistake, not racist but a mistake.” As of Monday morning, Glassman’s original tweet on his personal account is still live.
KEY BACKGROUND
Before Glassman’s tweet, CrossFit had stayed noticeably silent on Twitter and Instagram on the Black Lives Matter movement as a host of companies publicly took a stand on anti-racism following Floyd’s death. CrossFit has previously pledged public support for the LGBT community, as well as dedicating its ‘Hero’ workouts to fallen soldiers.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabeltogoh/2020/06/08/reebok-and-athletes-cut-ties-with-crossfit-over-founder-greg-glassmans-george-floyd-tweet/amp/
